This memorandum seeks to ensure that current Food and Nutrition Service guidance pertaining to federal civil rights and nondiscrimination obligations remains aligned with applicable laws, regulations, executive orders and directives relevant to the agency’s 16 nutrition assistance programs.

USDA has rescinded the Biden Administration’s May 2022 Bostock policy update that sought to require federally-funded food and nutrition service programs to redefine discrimination by reason of “sex” under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) and the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 as not based on just male or female, but also “gender identity.” Today’s guidance eliminates the illegal threats issued under the Biden Administration that mandated compliance with ever-evolving concepts of gender ideology as a condition for participation in USDA school programs.

This memorandum clarifies that telephonic and virtual fair hearings and administrative disqualification hearings are allowed, reminds state agencies of related requirements, and recommends various best practices when conducting telephonic or virtual hearings. This memo rescinds and supersedes previous telephonic hearing guidance provided in FNS policy memos 82-14 and 83-05.

This Report to Congress from USDA responds to a requirement established by the 2018 Farm Bill to address requirements to coordinate efforts within USDA to reduce barriers to food access. USDA has identified FNS as the Food Access Liaison to coordinate efforts and annually respond to this request. The report describes activities that occurred from October 2020 through September 2023 to reduce barriers to food access given the last such annual report submitted in March 2021 covered fiscal year 2020

FNS recently released a new report on SNAP household characteristics for fiscal year (FY) 2022.

This guidance is intended to assist state agencies and program operators of the Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program in meeting the longstanding federal requirement to collect race and ethnicity data of program participants.

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide clarification on the written notice requirements that apply to indian tribal organizations and state agencies that administer FDPIR, per the USDA regulations on equal opportunity for religious organizations to participate in USDA assistance programs.

The purpose of this memorandum is to clarify the written notice and referral requirements for organizations that receive USDA Foods or administrative funding as part of CSFP and TEFAP program guidance, per USDA regulations on equal opportunity for religious organizations to participate in USDA assistance programs.

USDA and eight other federal agencies recently published a final rule entitled, Partnerships With Faith-Based and Neighborhood Organizations at 89 FR 15671 (final rule). The final rule amended USDA regulations at 7 CFR part 16 related to equal opportunity for faith-based organizations that operate USDA programs and religious protections for USDA program beneficiaries.